Tehran threatens to disrupt oil supplies if attacked by US
TEHRAN, June 4: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Sunday any Western attempt to punish Tehran over its nuclear programme would jeopardize oil shipments, an implied threat to try to close the Strait of Hormuz choke point through which much of the world’s oil supplies must pass.
Ayatollah Khamenei, who has the final say on all state matters, also declared that Western accusations that Iran wanted to build a nuclear weapon were “a sheer lie.”
“If you make any mistake (punish or attack Iran), definitely shipment of energy from this region will be seriously jeopardized. You have to know this,” Ayatollah Khamenei said in a speech broadcast live on state-run radio and directed to Western nations.
Khamenei said the United States and its allies would be unable to secure oil shipments passing out of the Persian Gulf through the strategic Strait of Hormuz to the Indian Ocean. At its narrowest point, the strait — which separates Iran from the Arabian peninsula, is only 70 kilometers wide.
“You will never be able to protect the energy supply in this region. You will not be able to do it,” he said. Iran vows not give in to ‘threats and bribes’ He rejected international demands that his country suspend sensitive nuclear work, vowing the Islamic republic would not buckle in the face of threats and bribes.
“We have achieved a lot of scientific goals,” Ayatollah Khamenei said in a speech marking the 17th anniversary of the death of Iran’s Islamic revolutionary leader, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
“This is a historic investment. It represents our political independence and national self-confidence. We should not sell out this precious resource because of the enemies’ threats and we should not be fooled by enemy bribes,” he said.
The five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany on Thursday agreed to present Tehran with a package of incentives and the prospect of fresh multilateral talks on the condition that Iran first suspends uranium enrichment.
EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana is expected in Tehran in the coming days to present the proposals, and Iran has been given just weeks to make up its mind — or else face Security Council action including possible sanctions.
But the top Iranian leader added to indications that the offer could end up being dead on arrival, and he shrugged off any threat of Tehran suffering if it turned down the offer.
“You threaten Iran. You say you want to direct energy in the region. If you make a single mistake about Iran, the supply of energy will definitely be put in serious risk,” Ayatollah Khamenei said of the United States.
“There is no consensus against Iran. It is only the Americans and some of their allies,” he said. “This is all about a political monopoly of energy. They want others to beg for energy.”
Speaking at Ayatollah Khomeini’s mausoleum on the southern outskirts of Tehran, Ayatollah Khamenei insisted that Iran is no threat to anyone.
“We have friendly relations with all the region and Asia. We have good and healthy relations with Europe, and in the close future, because they need our gas, these relations will become even better,” Ayatollah Khamenei reasoned.
“They accuse us of developing nuclear bombs. This is an absurd lie. We do not need nuclear weapons and bombs. We don’t have any target to use them on. Using nuclear weapons is against Islamic rules,” he declared.
“We will not impose the costs of building and maintenance of nuclear weapons on our people. Our explosive source is the power of our faith.”
He also said that the United States had been weakened.
“In Iraq, you failed. You say you have spent 300 billion dollars to bring a government in office that obeys you. But it did not happen. In Palestine, you made all attempts to prevent Hamas from coming to power and again you failed. Why don’t you admit that you are weak and your razor is blunt,” he insisted.
“We do not want war... but you should know that whoever threatens our interests, they will see the sharpness of our wrath.”
On Saturday President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad revealed that in a telephone conversation earlier on Saturday with UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, he had been asked to examine the proposals and not act hastily.
“I said that we will not act hastily and that we will examine the proposals,” Mr Ahmadinejad said.—AFP
TEHRAN, June 4: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Sunday any Western attempt to punish Tehran over its nuclear programme would jeopardize oil shipments, an implied threat to try to close the Strait of Hormuz choke point through which much of the world’s oil supplies must pass.
